T.X. Watson's Pre-EVENT blog

It's almost 3 in the afternoon, and I've just put on pants.
This isn't a first step into a shift towards super-voyeuristic blogging about the minutiae of my daily life. But it is the second day of my vacation, and I've already managed to make it to a weekday on which I don't get dressed until mid-afternoon.

I'm not thrilled about this, for a few reasons.

One, because I don't want to totally destroy my sleep schedule this winter. Getting dressed at 3 implies the also-true reality that I got out of bed after noon.

Two, clothing, and the state of one's clothes, has a big psychological impact on a person. Or at least it does on me. I suspect that I wouldn't have spent the first two hours of today listening to podcasts and playing Minecraft if I'd gotten dressed first thing out of bed. I suspect I would have already blogged.

And it's not just the fact of wearing clothes, but the quality of those clothes. I get a lot more done on days when I feel good about how I look, even if I'm not going to be seen by anyone that day. I know it sounds woefully conformist and buying-into-the-mainstream, but putting in the effort really does help kickstart a day towards much greater productivity.

But, then, putting in the effort doesn't have to mean looking like you belong in an office in a bank. Personally, when I'm at my best, or when I'm dressed the way that makes me feel I'm at my best, I look like I could fit in at a formal engagement, but that anyone overly worried about social norms would be annoyed that they couldn't find anything technically wrong with my outfit. You could certainly go more formal, conservative or conventional with that, but you can also go much farther off the stylistic deep-end, and still get that kickstart that you get from starting your day off making yourself look like the person you want to look like.

Finally, I need to start getting myself into better personal organization habits. Next semester is going to be a busy one, and I really need to hit the ground running. I'm taking a full courseload and I have a novel to finish.